ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Wednesday it is conducting “additional strikes” on Iran at the direction of President Donald Trump, saying the operation aims to protect freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

“The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway,” the command said in an X post

Semi-official Iranian media reported moments earlier that explosions were heard in several parts of Iran, including Bushehr and Sirik, as well as the Konarak and Chabahar counties in Sistan and Baluchestan province.

Trump threatened earlier on Wednesday to hit Iran “hard” while speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara, saying: "They violate the agreement every day." Hours later, the US president said he expects the military flare-up with Iran to end "very quickly."

Earlier, when asked whether the June 17 truce between himself and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian remained in effect despite the renewed exchanges, Trump replied, "As far as I'm concerned, it's over."

The conflict reemerged in the early hours of Wednesday, when the US and Iran exchanged strikes targeting ports in southern Iran and US military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, with both Washington and Tehran accusing each other of violating the ceasefire agreement.

Trump said the planned overnight strikes were a continuation of US retaliation for Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, referring to Iran's Tuesday attack on a Saudi- and Qatari-flagged oil tanker transiting the waterway.

Tehran has repeatedly maintained that vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz must use shipping lanes approved by Iranian authorities and provide prior notification before passing through the strategic waterway.